Culture Crawl

From art to natural history to wildlife, NMSU has several museums and collections on campus that give visitors opportunities to view artifacts and tour exhibitions. Admission is free, and parking is available on campus weekdays after 4:30 p.m. and on weekends. Contact locations for possible temporary closures due to COVID-19 concerns.

Arthropod Collection
945 College Dr.
Skeen Hall
It’s one of the largest collections of arthropods in the state, with more than half a million specimens. Mainly used for research, teaching and outreach, the Arthropod Collection houses the work of more than 100 years of collection and identification and represents thousands of hours of work by many arthropod groups. The collection has become an invaluable resource to the Department of Entomology, Plant Pathology and Weed Science, NMSU and the state as a reference for quick identification of arthropods. The collection does not have visiting hours, as the curator tries to focus her time on outreach at community events and classrooms.
Hours: Made by appointment.
To schedule a visit email hvessels@nmsu.edu or call 575-646-5552.
arthropods.nmsu.edu

Wildlife Museum
2980 South Espina St.
Knox Hall
More than 6,000 specimens representing major vertebrate groups, some even dating back to the early 1900s can be found within the NMSU Wildlife Museum. These specimens are a testament to the origin and historical distribution of wildlife in southern New Mexico and elsewhere in the American Southwest. The museum is an essential part of the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology. The collection is made up of about 800 lots of fishes, 200 specimens of amphibians and reptiles, 1,900 specimens of birds and 3,000 specimens of mammals.
Hours: Made by appointment.
To schedule a visit to the museum, contact curator Jennifer Frey at jfrey@nmsu.edu or 575-646-3395. aces.nmsu.edu/wildlifemuseum/

Zuhl Museum
775 College Dr.
Home of the Zuhl Collection, the Zuhl Museum is part art gallery, part natural history museum. The majority of the more than 1,800 beautiful specimens of petrified wood, fossils and minerals in the collection are on display at the Zuhl Museum including the largest and finest collection of petrified wood display in the country. Displays are also available in the Zuhl Library and Gardiner Hall.
Hours: 12 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and second Saturday of the month
575-646-4714
zuhlmuseum.nmsu.edu

University Art Museum
1380 University Ave.
Devasthali Hall
NMSU’s Art Museum is housed along with the university’s Department of Art inside Devasthali Hall. The art museum’s mission is to serve as an academic environment for the critical analysis of visual art while making culturally relevant and conceptual practice accessible to the university and surrounding regional and border communities. The art museum curates original exhibitions and stewards more than 4,200 works in the university’s permanent collection, which includes the country’s largest collection of Mexican retablos as well as contemporary and modern photographs, paintings, prints and graphics, book art, and small scale sculpture and metals.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday
575-646-2545
uam.nmsu.edu

University Museum
1280 E. University Ave.
Kent Hall
Through its care and maintenance of ethnographic, historic, ancient and contemporary objects, the University Museum preserves an important part of Southwestern and Border region culture and history. The museum collections are primarily anthropological (archaeological and ethnographic) with secondary collections in history and the natural sciences.
Hours: 12 to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday
575-646-5161
univmuseum.nmsu.edu

Paul W. Klipsch Museum
1060 Frenger Mall
Ed and Harold Foreman Engineering Complex
The Paul W. Klipsch Museum is a tribute to Klipsch ’26 and his wife Valerie, who have given the NMSU College of Engineering memorabilia from the audio engineering field spanning more than eight decades. Major exhibits include laboratory equipment and other items Klipsch used at NMSU along with a unique collection of Klipsch prototype speaker systems and commercial issues, which range from large auditorium horns to residential-sized systems, both corner speakers and rectangular cabinet units.
Hours: Made by appointment
Call 575-646-3471 or 575-646-5247.
engr.nmsu.edu/the-paul-w-klipsch-museum/